Co-Buy Curious?
How Does Co-Buying Work?
Co-Buying is when a group of people purchase property together, often to increase their buying power and purchase more property than they would be able to acquire individually. This can be families, couples, single folks — the makeup of your group doesn’t have to be a particular way to be successful. The members of the group come together to identify their interested and buying power, as a way to evaluate potential properties that will work for their needs. This could be a large shared house, a multi-family building where everyone has their own unit, or somewhere in-between. We love helping groups tackle these questions and find the right property for their budget and needs. Not sure where to start? We’d love to help.
Benefits of Community Housing
Provide opportunities for community-focused living environments that increase human connection and improve quality of life
Secure and stabilize access to housing for all
Create additional affordable housing stock in existing structures, without prohibitive development and building costs
Increase opportunities for home-ownership and wealth building for middle income earners
Community Housing Types
Limited Equity Cooperatives & Shared Ownership Housing
- Ownership of the building belongs to the members, as shareholders.
- Residents can purchase or earn equity over time, allowing them to accumulate wealth and personal equity instead of just renting
- Co-buying single family and multi-family homes can lower the barrier to entry for homeownership by pooling resources
- Most of these arrangements have a shared labor system and democratic governance, varying based on layout/private space. Most homes or buildings are self-managed, decreasing the operational costs
- Also called ‘Private Equity Cooperatives’
Co-Housing
- Ownership of the building belongs to individual members
- Residents purchases homes / individual units. Historically these have been townhome type structures, but we believe there are ample opportunities to use existing multifamily properties to create co-housing communities
- Owners receive more greenspace and shared amenities than they would receive in a single family home of the same size.
- Often includes community management, shared labor of outdoor and community space, events
Is Community Housing Right For You?
Lifestyle Questions:
What kind of housing do you want? How much do you want to share? How much room do you need? What shared resources would you love to have? What do you have to contribute?
Ownership Questions:
How long do you want to own the property you’re buying? What happens when someone wants to sell? Do existing owners have first right of refusal? Can owners sublet their space? Do you allow sweat Equity?
